Page 4385 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 8 December 1993
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MR BERRY: Ms Ellis seems perfectly happy with my answer. She is perfectly happy because we are getting right to the nub of the issue.
MADAM SPEAKER: Thank you for your point of order, Mr Kaine. I believe that the Minister is answering the question. Would you please proceed, Mr Berry?
MR BERRY: It is one of the reasons why the VMOs are still taking action against sick and injured in the ACT; there is no question about that. If the Liberals had the guts to come out and demand that they go back to work and criticise them for the action they are taking, it might help.
Mrs Carnell: Criticise you.
MR BERRY: Of course you criticise me.
Mr De Domenico: And if you had the guts to go and eyeball them instead of sending in the troops.
MR BERRY: Come on! You would not know anything about it.
MADAM SPEAKER: Order! The Minister would get to his answer sooner if he was not interrupted. Mr Berry, please proceed to answer the question, not their interjections.
MR BERRY: Because of the VMOs strike, and that is what it is, and the actions of their union, because that is what they are - there is nothing wrong with trade unionism; but never ever deny it - - -
Mr Humphries: Unless they are doctors.
MR BERRY: No, there is nothing wrong with doctors having a trade union; but never deny it, and that is what they seek to do. They seek to deny that they are on strike, but they are. It is very hard for them to link successfully a strike and care of patients. It does not work too well. Bleeding patients are being sent to Sydney on aeroplanes because doctors are on strike. It is very hard to win that argument publicly and very hard for you to defend, Mrs Carnell; but I note from your silence a defence.
Mrs Carnell: That is right, because the Speaker told me to be quiet.
MR BERRY: May I answer that interjection. Let Mrs Carnell outside demand that the doctors go back to work. Outside of this place there is silence on the issue of demanding that the doctors go back to work, silence on the issue of criticising the effect of their devastating action on the ACT health system. Therefore I hear a loud defence of the doctors' actions.
We have a duty in the ACT to maintain the health care of the Canberra community and we have committed ourselves to that duty. We cannot sit and wait forever while the AMA plays its games, because that is what it is doing - playing games with the lives of people in the ACT. We do not have a blank cheque, although Gary Humphries did. Mr Humphries had a blank cheque and gave it to the VMOs.
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